11 Songs That Were Far Better Than The Movies They Were Made For

A high profile soundtrack can be a great tool for advertising an upcoming movie, especially if said soundtrack contains a hit single.

From Survivor’s epic Eye of the Tiger to promote Rocky 3 to all the powerful ballads before each new Bond film, history is littered with quality tunes that have got the job done in promoting the upcoming product and getting the potential audiences hyped about an upcoming release.

The integration of exciting moments from the film into the song’s music video is another way movie producers can insert extra advertising for their flick, often setting the tone for what style of film to expect.

The songs on this list have all proven to be significant hits that were not only commercially successful but also critically acclaimed. But as can be seen from these entries, a tune's success is not always a guarantee that the same fate will befall the film the song is linked to.

From tired scripts to unnecessary sequels; to films more interested in promoting its star talent than getting ‘unimportant’ aspects like plot and character development sorted, filmmakers can always find a way to ruin the head start that their soundtrack has given them.

The modern day brat pack of Charlie Sheen, Emilio Estevez, Kiefer Sutherland and Lou Diamond Phillips made the first Young Guns a serviceable enough film, a time killer that made a small profit. The producers pulled out the big guns (pun intended) for promoting the sequel and brought in up and coming megastar Jon Bon Jovi and his band to sing the soundtrack’s big hit.

After turning down Estevez’s request to use the single Wanted Dead or Alive on the soundtrack due to unsuitable lyrics, Bon Jovi got to work on creating a big hit. And oh what a glorious hit it was! A smash hit of an anthem that is arguably the best of Jovi’s career. From the slowly brooding guitar to the epic drum roll through to the brilliant screeching tones of the lead singer, Blaze of Glory felt like a movie all in itself.

Young Guns 2 seemed incredibly lightweight in comparison to Jovi’s classic, with all the potentially interesting plot points tied up in the original film’s conclusion. The lack of need or planning for a sequel is evident from this final scene, with Billy the Kid and his gang’s exploits all being neatly tidied up. Like other films on this list, Young Guns 2 is not completely hopeless, especially if your expectations are low, and it proved to be a minor box office success. But considering the incredibly epic song that promoted it, the film just felt like a massive let down.